Greece Military - 2024

Military and security forces

Hellenic Armed Forces: Hellenic Army (Ellinikos Stratos, ES; includes National Guard), Hellenic Navy (Elliniko Polemiko Navtiko, EPN), Hellenic Air Force (Elliniki Polemiki Aeroporia, EPA; includes air defense) (2024)

note 1: the police (under the Ministry of Citizen Protection) and the armed forces (Ministry of National Defense) share law enforcement duties in certain border areas; the Greek Coast Guard is under the Ministry of Shipping Affairs and Island Policy

note 2: the National Guard was established in 1982 as an official part of the Army to help protect Greece and provide reinforcements and support to the Army in peacetime and in times of mobilization and war; members undergo weekly training run by the Army, which also provides weapons and ammunition

Military expenditures

3.1% of GDP (2023 est.)
3.9% of GDP (2022)
3.7% of GDP (2021)
2.9% of GDP (2020)
2.5% of GDP (2019)

Military and security service personnel strengths

approximately 120,000 active-duty personnel (85,000 Army; 15,000 Navy; 20,000 Air Force); approximately 35,000 National Guard (2023)

Military equipment inventories and acquisitions

the military's inventory consists of a mix of imported weapons from Europe and the US, as well as a limited number of domestically produced systems; in recent years, France, Germany, and the US have been the top suppliers; Greece's defense industry is capable of producing a range of military hardware, including naval vessels and associated subsystems (2023)

note: Greece is in the midst of a significant military modernization program which includes acquisitions of fighter aircraft and naval ships from France and armored vehicles and tanks from Germany; it has also boosted purchases of US equipment, including fighter aircraft upgrades, helicopters, and naval patrol craft

Military service age and obligation

19-45 years of age for compulsory military service for men; 12-month obligation for all services (note - as an exception, the duration of the full military service is 9 instead of 12 months if conscripts, after the initial training, serve the entire remaining time in certain areas of the eastern borders, in Cyprus, or in certain military units); 18 years of age for voluntary military service for men and women (2023)

note 1: compulsory service applies to any individual whom the Greek authorities consider to be Greek, regardless of whether the individual considers himself Greek, has a foreign citizenship and passport, or was born or lives outside of Greece; Greek citizens living permanently outside of Greece have the right to postpone their conscription; they are permanently exempted from their military obligations when they reach the age of 45 years old

note 2: up to 50% of the Greek military is comprised of conscripts

note 3: as of 2020, women comprised approximately 16% of the military's full-time personnel

Military deployments

approximately 1,000 Cyprus; 100 Kosovo (NATO); 140 Lebanon (UNIFIL) (2023)

Military - note

the Hellenic Armed Forces (HAF) are responsible for protecting Greece’s independence, sovereignty, and territorial integrity; the HAF also maintains a presence on Cyprus (the Hellenic Force in Cyprus or ELDYK) to assist and support the Cypriot National Guard; as a member of the EU, NATO, and other international organizations, the HAF participates in multinational peacekeeping and other security missions abroad, taking a particular interest in missions occurring in the near regions, such as the Balkans, the Mediterranean and Aegean seas, the Middle East, and North Africa; areas of focus for the HAF include instability in the Balkans, territorial disputes with Turkey, and support to European security through the EU and NATO

Greece’s NATO membership is a key component of its security; it became a NATO member in 1952 and occupies a strategic location in the Eastern Mediterranean on NATO’s southern flank; Greece is host to several NATO facilities, including the Deployable Corps Greece (NDC-GR) headquarters in Thessaloniki, the Combined Air Operations Center in Larissa, the Multinational Peace Support Operations Training Center in Kilkis, the Multinational Sealift Coordination Center in Athens, and the Naval Base, Maritime Interdiction Operational Training Centre, and NATO Missile Firing Installation at Souda, Crete 

the Hellenic Army (established 1828) consists of the Active Army, the National Guard, the High Readiness Army Reserves, and the Reserves; the active Army has an army and several corps-level command formations, including a command for the Aegean Islands, a corps in Thrace to guard the Greco-Turkish land border, and the NDC-GR; there are several divisional headquarters and about 20 combat brigades, which include air mobile, airborne, amphibious, armored, helicopter aviation, infantry, and mechanized forces; National Guard units are organized into divisional and brigade-sized commands and typically based in border regions, both on the mainland and on some of Greece’s islands

also established in 1828, the Navy’s missions include naval presence operations, the protection of Greek sovereign rights, such as the continental shelf, EEZ, and Greek-owned shipping, the security of Greece’s sea lines of communication, and power projection; it has separate commands for frigates, patrol ships, mine warfare, submarines, the Aegean Sea, surveillance, amphibious, aviation, and special operations; its principal warships include 13 frigates and 10 attack submarines, which are supplemented by fast-attack and patrol vessels of varying size and capabilities

the Air Force, established in 1911, is organized into wings, squadrons, and groups and has nearly 200 combat aircraft of French and US origin, plus early warning, maritime patrol, reconnaissance, tanker, and transport aircraft, as well as helicopters; it also has air and missile defense units (2023)